Israel's government last night suddenly agreed to a unilateral cease-fire in what can best be described as a last minute attempt to transform victory into defeat.

The foolhardiness of this move quickly became apparent, as Israel ceased, but Hamas continued to fire.

The Jewish state's self-imposed cessation of hostilities went into effect at 2 a.m. local time. Not surprisingly, just a few hours later, Hamas began firing rockets again at southern Israel, targeting six at the town of Sderot this morning.

Sure, international pressure is mounting for Israel to stop defending itself, and a new administration is about to be inaugurated in Washington which is far less likely to be sympathetic to Israel's cause.

But neither of these developments can possibly justify leaving Hamas in place in Gaza, and subjecting 900,000 Israelis in the south of the country to continued rocket fire on their homes.

There is no recourse other than outright victory, and no room for stopping until the mission is complete.

The best way to bring about a true cease-fire is to eliminate Hamas once and for all. Then, you can be sure, the rocket attacks will certainly come to a halt.